And then there is the larger meaning of the word change. Do you feel that Caroline changes at the end of the piece? SDC: She doesn’t have the capacity to change, In fact, she says “changin’s a danger for a woman like me.” For me, she thinks as long as she can get her kids through their lives, that’s going to have to be enough. She feels it’s too late for her to change. She looks at her friend Dotty going to college and mixing with a new crew, and she knows she doesn’t have the money to do that for herself. Dotty has a boyfriend, she doesn’t have any kids, she doesn’t have any dependents. Dotty has a completely different lifestyle from Caroline. Caroline does try to move herself forward because by the time we get to the second act, she’s found out where Vietnam is. She had someone show her on a map, so now she knows where her son is serving. I think there are these myriad worries that don’t allow her to change in the same way others in her community do. As you said, the word “change” in the title is multi-faceted: there’s the change Noah goes through growing up and letting go, there is change in the household with Noah’s father getting remarried, there is change politically—JFK has been assassinated—the civil rights movement is forcing change. The whole world is changing around her in a way that Caroline just can’t. So for me, she’s the one character that doesn’t change.
TS: What do you look for from a director, choreographer, and musical director when you are working on a musical role, whether it’s a new musical or a revival? SDC: If they allow openness, honesty, and truth in the room, then the creative process is not stifled, and you are free to try things. You are allowed to fail. You are allowed to discover.
TS: Can we talk a little bit about where you were born and educated, and if you had any teachers who had a profound influence on your work as an artist? SDC: I am London-born of Jamaican parents who grew up together in Morgans Forest in the parish of Clarendon, Jamaica, where they were next door neighbors and childhood sweethearts and came over to Britain in the 1950s. They weren’t on the Windrush, but they were part of the Windrush generation. They made lives for themselves here and gave me a wonderful opportunity. I have been able to do what I love by being in London and being in the heart of theatre. It’s such an absolute blessing.
I went to a normal, comprehensive school, very mixed, all kinds of creeds, colors, religious denominations. Lunchtimes were a thing of beauty because we would all just exchange food. We started tasting all sorts of food—from India and Greece. As that generation, we didn’t stick to separate groups because our schools were so mixed. And I went to the Anna Scher Drama School in Islington. Anna Scher was an English teacher who saw kids just being kids on the street or hanging around in school and not really doing anything and she started drama classes, which dealt mainly in improv. We would look at classic pieces and plays, or play out different scenarios and themes, but we would then improv them.
I went to North London College to do a social work course because I knew that the acting industry could be precarious, and I wanted to have qualifications in something that I would love doing as much as acting. While I was waiting for my results from the social work college, I was in the common room, and there was a copy of The Stage lying about. I picked it up, and they were advertising for a job at the Battersea Arts Centre. I went along to the auditions and got that job, and I have been an actor and a singer ever since.
TS: What inspires you as an artist? SDC: What inspires me is the people I work with. I have been very fortunate to work with some incredible people. People who are gifted,
talented, creative, and generous with their time and their wisdom and gifts. That’s the directors I work with, the designers, actors, backstage crew, and on and on. When I am able to be in a room with them and watch their creative genius flow—that’s what inspires me.
TS: What is one of the most challenging experiences you've had in your career? And what did you take away from it? SDC: All roles are challenging for different reasons—that’s why I like doing them—because they are going to teach me something about myself and my craft and how I can move forward. It can be challenging dealing with “foolishness.” There was an instance where I was working on a show and the writer asked if I could be more Black. And, I said, “You may not have noticed, but I am Black,” and he said, “Well, I know Black people.” He meant for me to be more of a caricature, more stereotypical. And a director once asked me, a girl from Tottenham, London, “How does one pick cotton?” Like it would just be embedded in my DNA. It’s those kinds of requests that I find challenging. Within the work, challenge is almost always a joy because it’s always going to stretch me. No matter how afraid I might have been of something, there is always a reason why I have done it, and it has taught me something. I love challenges. They lift me.
TS: Do you have any advice for a young person who says they want a career as an actor? SDC: It’s always about the craft. If you want to become an actor because you think you’re going to get famous—then it’s not for you. So few actors are famous. You have to want to tell the stories. In order to tell those stories, you have to be part of a team. You have to be a team player. Find your family, your community. I also say go and usher. Ushering is fantastic because you can see craft happen nightly. You can get a nightly masterclass where you can watch a different actor each night, and you see how they deal with the audience. Are they generous on stage, do they upstage people? What is it about that performance that makes you lean in, what is it about it that makes you lean back or become disinterested? There’s so much that you can learn from ushering, and you’ll be getting paid a little bit of money, too.•
CAROLINE, OR CHANGE UPSTAGE GUIDE 11
Sharon D Clarke in rehearsal
for Caroline, or Change Photo: Jeremy Daniel
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